A More Than Troublesome Life
by the Sin Hunter Alchemist
Summary: It was troublesome really. Not anything specific, Shikamaru had decided long ago, but life in general. A collection of ShikaTema oneshots. Be prepared for spoilers.
1. A More than Troublesome Day

This is an exert from a fanfic I hope to soon write. It dances around a major spoiler, so if you haven't read volume 328 yet, do not read this.

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It was troublesome really.

Not anything specific, Shikamaru had decided long ago, but life in general.

This was his mantra on the way back from the bounty station. He trailed behind Ino and Chouji and it really wasn't anything new. It was just walking back to Konoha after another mission.

But it wasn't another mission, Shikamaru mused silently, fighting the urge to chew on the filter resting between his lips. Distracting himself, he took a drag from the cigarette and the taste was still as he'd always imagined.

It was still raining. That wasn't so troublesome. It gave him a reason not to cry, which was far more troublesome than getting wet from the rain.

The gates were open when they approached the Hidden Village. For some reason, Shikamaru became increasingly nauseas at this.

Ino, who was now grasping Chouji's arm like it were her only anchor to reality, let out a noise that sounded as if it were caught between a realivedlaugh and a sob. Chouji glanced back, giving Shikamaru a quick nod. The brunette only dropped his cigarette, stepping on it before continuing on without a real destination in mind. His teammates didn't attempt a second good bye and took off towards the Yamanaka residence.

He had probably wandered around for close to an hour before finally reaching the Nara compound, so lost in trying not to think was he.

He slid in quietly, hoping desperately that his mother wasn't around. By now the news had to have gotten out and sympathy was far too troublesome, especially from such a woman as Yoshino Nara.

A lack of shoes near the door was registered in his brain immediately. No scents in the air associated with cooking either. A bowl of fruit sat on the table, looking a few days past ripe. Shikamaru sighed in relief when he realized this meant his parents were still out on their missions.

He headed for his room, stripping off his wet clothes on the way, fully intent on sleeping off the state of shock he figured he was in twenty minutes ago.

He had stripped down to his boxers when he opened his door and realized he wasn't alone.

Temari sat on his bed, arms and legs crossed, looking him up and down with out the usual raised eyebrow. There was no smirk, no playful tilt of the head. He refused to acknowledge the expression she did wear.

"Hey," he said and his voice broke.

He couldn't hold her gaze any longer so, instead, he walked to his dresser and fished around the top drawer. Normally he would just wear his boxers to bed, too tired by the time he stripped down to find any pajamas, but he needed to stall.

He wasn't sure for how long he looked, thinking logically it was most likely ten minutes, but it wasn't nearly long enough.

"Shikamaru."

A hand was placed on his shoulder and something in him swelled.

"I can't," he choked, and he refused to turn to her. "It's too damn troublesome. I can't."

She was able to pry him off the dresser, which was when Shikamaru realized he couldn't breathe.

Gasping, even though he knew, he **_knew_**, it wasn't helping, was probably just going to send him into panic as he continued to hyperventilate.

Temari had somehow guided him to his bed. He now lay curled up on it, his head in her lap. She smoothed his hair and rubbed his back all the while rocking them back and forth.

She didn't tell him that it would be okay, or that things would get better. He wished that she would say it, some where deep down, wished that she could say it and that it would be true. What she did say was better than any of the usual nonsense.

"I'm here," Temari murmured, pulling out his rubber band and combing through his hair. "This is real, this is now. I'm here."

She continued to hold him as his sobs took him past exhaustion and into his usually beloved sleep.


	2. Less than Troublesome

Occurs right after A More Than Troublesome Day. This one isn't as angsty as it's predecessor, but id does have to be read in conjunction with the first (though you don't need this to feel like the first is finished).

* * *

Shikamaru woke to the rising of the moon.

The sun had long since dropped below the horizon and a happy looking quarter moon shown brightly in its place. Shikamaru might have glared at it, but he couldn't concentrate on anything that far away.

He was hungry.

Getting a snack shouldn't have taken nearly as long as it did this night. Between his slow and clumsy movements set on by grief, it took him nearly fifteen minutes to realize they didn't seem to have much in the way of food. It made sense - his entire family had been on missions this week - but his stomach still garbled its displeasure.

He settled on a few ration bars from his vest and headed back to sleep until the afternoon.

Leaning against his headboard was Temari, eyes hooded, but alert.

"Hey," she murmured.

"Hey," he responded.

They stared at each other for a long time. Shikamaru knew there was a lot between them right now, a thick cloud of emotions that he didn't really understand. He had let her see him at his worst, had trusted her enough to sleep in her lap.

It was a big step for a ninja, much bigger than any civilian could ever understand.

Shikamaru was in love with this woman.

He didn't need to say anything. Temari would know by now. His naps were one thing, but he was still aware of what was going on around him. He had slept soundly this evening; she could have slit his throat and he would have been defenseless.

And yet he slept.

Temari gave no indication of how she felt about this. It was a powerful position she was in now. Had she been from an enemy nation, she could continue the charade until she made him into a traitor by proxy.

Shikamaru didn't believe she would do that, but it was the knowledge that she could that terrified him. He should run while he had the opening.

Instead, he waited with bated breath for what she would do.

Minutes later, what felt like an hour to the tired, grief and love stricken Shikamaru, she held out her arms.

He stumbled onto the bed and buried himself in those arms, relief overtaking any sense he might have.

"Are you going to go?" he asked, sitting back so he could look at her. Temari's eyes were hard to read in the moonlight, but he could still try.

"Would you want me to stay?"

It was a fair point. Most ninja who had unintentionally confessed something like this (unintentionally handed over the full control of a situation) wanted space. They wanted the other party far away so they could regain control, regain the ground they lost.

"I'd want you to stay."

It was nearly silent in the room. She might not have heard it.

They both know she had.

Instead of commenting on it, she shoved him off the bed.

It was rather alarming, all of a sudden being thrown off his own bed. He sat up, blinking, wondering why she hadn't just left. Was it necessary to throw him off the bed first?

When he sat up, however, she wasn't gone. She had hopped of the bed and pulled down the covers. She took off her yukata, revealing a pair of shorts and (of all things) a black camisole, and set to work putting her hair down. Temari completely ignored him as she did these things so Shikamaru took the hint and followed suit.

Feeling unusually tidy, he took his clothes out to the hamper in the main bathroom, leaving him in only his boxers. By the time he returned to his room, Temari was lying in the bed, hair down and tousled - probably to minimize the crinkles left in from the ponytails, Shikamaru surmised - and holding up the edge of the blanket in invitation. Despite this, he stopped in the doorway and just stared at her.

After a moment, Temari let go of the blanket and sat up.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Shikamaru replied, but he didn't move. "I just wanted to look for a minute."

Temari laughed. It was a quiet sound but it made Shikamaru's heart leap. He hated himself for it, for being this sentimental, but for tonight, he could allow it. At least he could explain it away with the excuse that just hours before he had suffered a severe emotional shock.

"Stop being an idiot and get over here."

He was moving even before he registered words. When he climbed into the bed, Temari took his hand and pulled it around her, turning away from him, so that her back rested against his chest and his hand rested against her stomach.

Stifling the urge to smell her hair (he would never forgive himself for being so mushy as that), Shikamaru tightened his grip and kissed behind Temari's ear.

"Will you be here in the morning?"

She didn't answer immediately but he didn't let himself worry.

"Not in the morning. I have to meet with the Hokage. That's the entire reason I'm in Konoha to begin with. Actually…"

Temari fell silent then.

"Actually?"

"I may have rushed out of her office today in the middle of our actual meeting when that messenger reported what happened. She, at least, had the presence of mind to shout after me that we should finish tomorrow morning."

Temari craned her neck so she could see him, a shy smile on her face. It wasn't a look he was used to seeing on her. Hell, it wasn't a look that he was used to seeing on anyone but Hinata. But it was beautiful.

"You've done something awful to me, Shikamaru."

It wasn't easy kissing her in this position, but Shikamaru managed it.

"Nothing you haven't done to me."

She snorted - _That's more like it_, Shikamaru found himself thinking - and faced the wall once more.

They lay their in silence for a long time. Shikamaru was just considering letting himself fall asleep when Temari spoke again.

"I'll be here in the afternoon."

"Hmm?"

"The afternoon." This time Temari turned completely around so that their fronts were pressed together and his hand rested on the dip in her back. "That's when you would be waking up anyway. I'll be back by then. And if you're not some pervert in your sleep, maybe I'll bring back food."

He didn't know how to respond verbally at first, so he pulled her close, tucking her head under his chin. Finally, he realized the only response was a completely honest one - something unheard of in the world of shinobi.

"I'd like that."


	3. A Troublesome Inquiry

AN: Hey guys, long time no update. So, this chapter takes place after the first two but it no where near angsty. Heck, I dare to say it's chuckle-worthy.

Since this is a series of oneshots, if any of you have always wanted to read a specific ShikaTema story, I'm open to requests. Most of these will only be faintly related, so it can't hurt to ask, can it? And, as always, reviews make me write more.

* * *

The sound of a fan clicking shut resounded through the otherwise silent bedroom.

Shikamaru twitched, but dared not move any more. If he rolled over or opening his eyes, she would see. She would attack.

A twitch was a normal response for a ninja, though sleeping while someone perched over you wasn't. That was okay for Shikamaru. He could feign sleep for an extremely long time.

He just hoped her patience outlasted her anger.

Shikamaru could feel it radiating from her body; it would choke him if she didn't first.

The fan clicked open and then closed again.

She was keeping time with it, he realized, annoyed. She was counting how long he ignored her, probably to throw it back at him in the argument they were bound to have when she broke down and "woke" him.

Shikamaru decided to end it before it went on for too long. It would be troublesome to deal with an upset woman. Temari liked to hit with that fan too.

He was subtle about it, though. If she wanted to interrupt his daily nap, he'd throw her off her game. He'd start by throwing her off his window sill.

His shadow jetted out, much faster than he ever would, and flung her onto the open side of the bed. Shikamaru waited for an outraged shriek or scream; he heard neither so he thought it safe to roll over.

Temari glared at him, but didn't move to get up. That was a good sign. If she planned to fight him - she almost never brought her fan with her if she wanted a peaceful conversation - she would have shot back up immediately.

"Hey," he greeted, voice still hoarse from sleep.

Her expression softened slightly; she must have thought he had been faking it the whole time. Truth was, he had only just woken up, and had no idea how long she'd been there. Damn troublesome, how used to her he was getting; he didn't even wake up immediately when she came into his room anymore.

"You're an idiot."

He shrugged one of his shoulders and continued to stare at her.

For a long time, she didn't respond. They just stared at each other, waiting the other out. This annoyed Shikamaru even more than being woken up. He could be sleeping.

"There a reason you're here?"

She took the question in stride and just scowled at him. Then she looked away.

This confused him. No blush stained her cheeks and she didn't look very far, just over his shoulder, but she didn't meet his eyes.

"I heard something," she finally said. "After Asuma… I heard something."

"Yea? I've heard some stuff since then too," Shikamaru responded dryly.

He ignored the pang Asuma's name still brought him.

She stared hard at the wall before asking, almost dreamily, "Is Kurenai pregnant?"

Shikamaru blinked then frowned.

"Yea, but why woul-"

He didn't finish his thought. Another one had come upon him, one that should have come across a genius far sooner, but only entered a man's brain when it was too late. He leapt from the bed, landing between the windowsill and the door. He looked ready to bolt in either direction.

Startled, and more than a little confused at the sudden show of energy, Temari sat up.

"What's gotten into you?" she demanded, though her expression was far from stern.

"If you want a kid, get out now," he said flatly. Shifting eyes betrayed his panic.

"_What?_"

"I'm not marrying you," he offered as an explanation, calculating which way was a better escape route. A sudden vision flashed through his head; he was tending to the deer on the Nara compound while Temari called from the house that supper was ready. He nearly fainted at the thought.

The real Temari didn't look anyplace near domestic enough to bake supper, but Shikamaru was a man first, genius second.

"Did I ask for a proposal?"

He paused, still tense in case this was a trap.

"You mentioned pregnancy," he supplied.

She scowled again and threw her fan at him.

"That doesn't mean I want to get knocked up you moron."

He cursed and considered throwing it back. His panic was broken and he suddenly realized how foolish that was to assume that.

"You don't want a kid?" he asked tentatively.

"Hell no."

"And you don't want to get married?"

"Who in their right mind would marry you?"

Because the thought of marriage (not so) secretly terrified him, he didn't take this as an insult.

Instead, he slumped back onto the bed, his head resting in her lap as he stared at her apologetically.

"You're an idiot," she said, voice soft.

"Yea, I know," he agreed.

They fell silent for a minute. In that time, Temari broke her resolve and began to smooth back Shikamaru's bangs.

"It Asuma's?"

"Yea."

"How long were they married?"

"Not long enough."

It was the way of the ninja. The two gave Asuma a moment of silence before resuming talk.

"And you're going to be its uncle?"

He groaned and tried to roll over. Temari flicked him in the nose and he stopped.

"I promised to take care of the brat," he muttered, staring at her mournfully. He never promised his services (other than to Konoha, of course, which was still troublesome) and he couldn't believe that he'd volunteered himself to help _raise_ some _kid_. Those things needed raising for twenty some years if you were lucky, more if it came out stupid.

Temari gave him a strange look, as if she were weighing her options. Having come to a decision, she leaned down and brushed her lips against his before her lips curled into the smile of a fox.

"At least it will prepare you for when we have kids."

His window rattled dangerously as he ran as far away from the woman as he could, her laughter chasing him out.


End file.
